Page 124 of A Captive Situation

Let’s fight, Jake.Go out in a blaze of glory. I’d be down for that, as long as it was with him.

But to do that, he needed to fight.Weneeded to fight.

We could do anything together.

I was trying to relay all of this with my eyes, and he was reading it all, but there was nothing looking back at me. He was lying down for Lane.

Then he winked at me.

I gasped, and regretted it. Stupid duct tape.

But he winked. I saw it. Hewinked.

Okay, okay. I was wiggling around, trying to throw myself up on my knees. I was doing a hell of an impersonation of a turtle flipped on its shell. My limbs somewhat flailing around.

I was ferocious.

“Get her up.”

I manifested that, just not quite this way. Two rough sets of hands took my arms and hauled me to my feet. I was jerked around, this time facing Jake and Lane.

Ugh. I could see which one was him right away. Short. Grotesque. No wonder Blake was running from him. He had a belly on him and he was sweating profusely. He was so dirty inside. I could tell. He had a gun in his hand too, but it was pointed at the floor. He wasn’t man enough to handle us without a gun, huh? All his men he paid weren’t enough for him? Or he was going to shoot us instead—

He spoke. “Take the tape off her. You can both have a moment. Say goodbye. It’s the least I could do for family.”

That little sweaty guy was not Lane.

It was the kid next to him. The kid! What the hell? He was a kid. How old was he? Then again, Blake was young too, but this guy? Really? He looked like any other young twenty-year-old. He could’ve still been in college. I mean, he was good looking in an “I’m dead inside anddon’t care about putting a bullet in your forehead” kind of way, but him?Him?

He didn’t even have a gun. And he was half standing, as if bored by the whole fiasco. He looked more ready to pop on some headphones and take a stroll outside listening to music on his way to some party. Maybe I was exaggerating how young he looked, but he didn’t look old enough to be the evil and heartless monster that he was.

Rough hands grasped my head. I had one second’s notice and the tape was ripped off.

“Aghhhhhyoufuckingpieceofohmygodthatfuckinghurt,” I screeched, sputtered, and whined, bending over to breathe out through my nose. I was going to kill Lane. I was going to kill the dude who took that tape off. I was going to kill the guy who kicked me, oh—he was already dead. I was going to kill everyone, and I glared around the warehouse to let them all know.

They were so terrified of me they didn’t dare let it show. Good. Right. Don’t let me see how much I unnerve you. I was still going to kill them all.

Just needed a fucking plan to do it.

“I hope she kills you one day,” I hissed. It hurt to talk.

Lane turned that lifeless gaze my way.

I flinched because it was eerie to have that stare on me.

“I changed my mind.” He raised his gun swiftly—Where did that gun come from?

“No!” Jake got in his way, stepping between us. His back to me. “Jesus Christ, Lane! She’s going to die. Of course she’s going to try and say something. She doesn’t go down easily.”

Lane sighed. “This has taken too much time already. Say your goodbyes.”

“I want to hug her.”

“You want tohugher?”

Jake was firm. “Yes.” He’d stepped back, close enough to touch me. I didn’t look at Lane again. I didn’t want to see that zombie-lookingpretty face anymore. Jake was all that mattered. He stepped farther into me, and brushed the back of—what was I feeling?

I mean, his vest was rubbing over my breasts and he was kinda getting them excited.

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